Best Online Associate Degrees in Hawaii 2024
Top Online Associate Degree Programs in Hawaii
- Hawaii Pacific University
- Chaminade University of Honolulu
- Leeward Community College
- Hawaiʻi Community College
- Kapiʻolani Community College
- Kauaʻi Community College
- Hawaii Pacific University
- Chaminade University of Honolulu
- Leeward Community College
- Kapiʻolani Community College
- Hawaiʻi Community College
- Kauaʻi Community College
- Leeward Community College 20 to 1
- Hawaii Pacific University 16 to 1
- Kapiʻolani Community College 15 to 1
- Hawaiʻi Community College 12 to 1
- Kauaʻi Community College 11 to 1
- Chaminade University of Honolulu 11 to 1
- Hawaii Pacific University $31,940
- Chaminade University of Honolulu $28,544
- Kauaʻi Community College $3,144
- Hawaiʻi Community College $3,144
- Leeward Community College $3,144
- Kapiʻolani Community College $3,144
- Chaminade University of Honolulu $25,200
- Hawaii Pacific University $20,306
- Kauaʻi Community College
- Kapiʻolani Community College
- Hawaiʻi Community College
- Leeward Community College
- Chaminade University of Honolulu
- Hawaii Pacific University
- Kauaʻi Community College
- Hawaiʻi Community College
- Kapiʻolani Community College
- Leeward Community College
- Chaminade University of Honolulu
- Hawaii Pacific University
- Kauaʻi Community College 11 to 1
- Chaminade University of Honolulu 11 to 1
- Hawaiʻi Community College 12 to 1
- Kapiʻolani Community College 15 to 1
- Hawaii Pacific University 16 to 1
- Leeward Community College 20 to 1
- Kauaʻi Community College $3,144
- Hawaiʻi Community College $3,144
- Leeward Community College $3,144
- Kapiʻolani Community College $3,144
- Chaminade University of Honolulu $28,544
- Hawaii Pacific University $31,940
- Hawaii Pacific University $20,306
- Chaminade University of Honolulu $25,200
Key Takeaways
- Earning an associate degree is an affordable way to get started on your college education. The typical associate degree will take about two years to complete.
- Many community colleges and two-year schools in Hawaii offer both traditional and online degree programs for students pursuing their associate degree in a wide variety of disciplines.
- Students who earn their online associate degree in their state of residence are typically eligible for in-state discount rates. If you are a resident of Hawaii, finding an online associate degree here at home will typically be the most affordable way to begin your higher education.
What is an Associate Degree?
An associate degree is a two-year degree that can be earned at state community colleges, vocational schools, and most accredited colleges and universities.
What will I study with an associate degree?
The associate degree provides an introductory level college education. You will usually take an array of liberal arts or humanities courses along with introductory level courses in a specific subject area. Most associate degree programs are available to both on campus students and online students.
Why get an associate degree?
There are several good reasons to get an associate degree. An associate degree is an affordable and accessible way to get a college education while improving your earning potential. The associate degree is popular both among students looking for entry-level work in their field, and for those who are already working.
The online degree is particularly popular at the associate level because so many students must balance work responsibilities and studies. Online courses and complete online programs make it possible for students to earn associate credits and degrees without disrupting daily work responsibilities.
The associate is also a far more affordable and accessible alternative to earning a bachelor’s degree. The associate degree takes about half as long to earn as a bachelor’s degree. Associate students need 60 credits to graduate, versus the 120 credits needed for a bachelor’s degree. And many state community colleges offer low tuition rates.
Can I get a job with an associate degree?
You can get an entry-level job in your field with an associate degree. Many students will use the associate degree as a way to get relevant job training before entering the job market. In fact, many associates will pursue entry level work in their field while earning a bachelor’s degree through online education.
Should I get an associate degree before pursuing a bachelor’s degree?
You may want to get an associate degree first to save money, or improve your admission chances, before getting a bachelor’s degree. The associate degree is a popular stepping stone for students who will seek a bachelor’s degree. When you earn an associate degree from an accredited state community college, you can usually transfer your credits toward your bachelor’s degree program.
Can I get an online degree at the associate level?
You can definitely get an online degree at the associate level. A growing number of online colleges offer high-quality associate-level online courses and complete online programs. Online students will typically take the same courses and curricula as on campus students.
Are associate degrees from online colleges respected?
Online degrees at the associate level are respected as long as these online degrees come from accredited community colleges or two-year schools. Regional accreditation is important when it comes to online colleges. If you plan to go into a bachelor’s degree program at a regionally accredited school, you must earn your online degree from a regionally accredited associate degree program.
If you need more answers to frequently asked questions about online degrees, we can help.
Featured Programs
Best Online Associate Degrees in Hawaii
- #1 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #1 Best Private Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #2 Best Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #3 The Most Influential Universities and Colleges Ranked by State 2024
Other Rankings
- #1 Best Online MBA Programs in Hawaii
- #2 Best Online Master's Programs in Hawaii 2024
- #3 Best Online Colleges in Hawaii 2024
- #3 Best Online Associate in Mathematics 2025
- #9 Best Online Bachelor’s in Public Administration Degree Programs for 2025
- #19 Best Online Associate in Business Administration
- #20 Best Online Associate in Cybersecurity
Tuition + fees
$32K
Acceptance
87%
Graduation
45%
Student body
6K
Median SAT/ACT
1150/23
Career Outlook for degree at Hawaii Pacific University
Cost of Degree: $36,080Expenses: $19,492Starting Salary: $56,400Cost Recoup Time: 10 yearsPaid back at 15% of annual salaryIf you want to make an impact locally and nationally, get in line with the vision at Hawaii Pacific University. They offer different areas of study fit for your professional and personal goals. Learning here goes beyond lectures and classrooms, and they have online and in-person formats for associate degrees.
What we love about Hawaii Pacific University:
Hawaii Pacific University encourages all its students to take part in experiential learning opportunities. Be a part of their diverse but small population of students who are focused on giving back to communities.
Hawaii Pacific University is ideal for students who:
Want to attend a school that is responsive to community needs.
Hawaii Pacific University might not be the best fit for students who:
Prefer to attend a school with a more active student life.
Online Associate Degrees
AS in General Business
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AS in Supervisory Leadership
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AS in Cybersecurity
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AS in Homeland Security
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AA in General Studies
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AS in Health Professions
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
- #23 The Best Catholic Colleges and Universities Ranked for 2024 #2 Best Liberal Arts Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #2 Best Private Colleges in Hawaii 2025 #4 Best Colleges in Hawaii 2025
Other Rankings
- #4 The Most Influential Universities and Colleges Ranked by State 2024
- #2 Best Online Associate in Criminal Justice
- #3 Best Online Master's Programs in Hawaii 2024
- #3 Best Online MBA Programs in Hawaii
- #4 Best Online Colleges in Hawaii 2024
- #5 Best Online Bachelor's in Religious Studies Degree Programs for 2024
- #11 Best Online Doctorate in Organizational Leadership Degree Programs 2025
- #12 Best Online Associate in Liberal Arts 2025
- #16 Best Online Bachelor's in Criminal Justice
- #17 Best Online Bachelor’s of Elementary Education Degree Programs for 2025
Tuition + fees
$29K
Acceptance
93%
Graduation
66%
Student body
3K
Career Outlook for degree at Chaminade University of Honolulu
Cost of Degree: $29,970Expenses: $20,962Starting Salary: $41,000Cost Recoup Time: 12 yearsPaid back at 15% of annual salarySpark positive change in your life and the lives of others while you study for an associate degree from Chaminade University of Honolulu. They offer several associate degree that allows students to gain skills and mindsets that help build stronger communities.
What we love about Chaminade University of Honolulu:
Classes are small but most students are from the different states of the US. Associate degree students will be pushed to their limits, get challenged, and practice creativity when enrolled in classes.
Chaminade University of Honolulu is ideal for students who:
Want to attend a school that prepares students for the real world.
Chaminade University of Honolulu might not be the best fit for students who:
May find their dorms and meal plans expensive.
Online Associate Degrees
AA in Business Administration
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AS in Criminology and Criminal Justice
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
AA in Liberal Arts
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
Tuition + fees
$3K
Graduation
28%
Student body
10K
Career Outlook for degree at Leeward Community College
Cost of Degree: $3,214Starting Salary: $37,500A diverse area of study for associate degrees is available at Leeward Community College. This is the best intimate community college to attend for those who are transitioning to a different profession or are looking for additional skills and knowledge.
What we love about Leeward Community College:
Leeward Community College aims to create a community focused on diversity and respect. The students come from different backgrounds, but they all learn together in unity and collaboration.
Leeward Community College is ideal for students who:
Want to be part of a tight-knit community.
Leeward Community College might not be the best fit for students who:
Prefer to attend a more modern campus.
Online Associate Degrees
AS in Accounting
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2.5 years
- Format: Online
AA in Liberal Arts
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2.5 years
- Format: Online
AS in Management
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2-3 years
- Format: Online
Tuition + fees
$3K
Graduation
31%
Student body
3K
Career Outlook for degree at Hawaiʻi Community College
Cost of Degree: $3,204Expenses: $13,584Starting Salary: $30,300Cost Recoup Time: 7 yearsPaid back at 15% of annual salaryAt Hawaii Community College, associate degree students can find different ways to fund their education. They have different school locations, but each one is geared toward providing high-quality educational opportunities.
What we love about Hawaii Community College:
Prepare for your career and acquire success through the well-designed associate curriculum from Hawaii Community College. All classes are offered in flexible formats, allowing students to be able to work full-time.
Hawaii Community College is ideal for students who:
Want to juggle their work with education.
Hawaii Community College might not be the best fit for students who:
Prefer to have less rigorous classes.
Online Associate Degrees
AS in Creative Media
- Required Credits: 61
- Completion time: None Reported
- Format: Online
Tuition + fees
$3K
Graduation
24%
Student body
9K
Career Outlook for degree at Kapiʻolani Community College
Cost of Degree: $3,284Starting Salary: $43,200Become a part of a global community that promotes equality and focuses on shared values when you study for an associate degree at Kapiolani Community College. This college aims to produce graduates who will be responsible citizens.
What we love about Kapiolani Community College:
As an associate degree student at Kapiolani Community College, you can expect to learn from passionate teachers who will support you every step of the way. They also integrate the Hawaiian culture into their programs.
Kapiolani Community College is ideal for students who:
Want to develop real-world values.
Kapiolani Community College might not be the best fit for students who:
Prefer to attend bigger class sizes.
Online Associate Degrees
AA in Liberal Arts
Concentrations
- General
- Business Administration
- Human Development and Family Studies
- Social Work
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: None Reported
- Format: Online
AA in Hawaiian Studies
- Required Credits: 60
- Completion time: 2 years
- Format: Online
Tuition + fees
$3K
Graduation
37%
Student body
2K
Career Outlook for degree at Kauaʻi Community College
Cost of Degree: $3,252Starting Salary: $40,200Kauai Community College currently offers 34 mixed programs that include associate degrees. Learners and professors become proactive contributors to society.
What we love about Kauai Community College:
The associate degrees at Kauai Community College are affordable. Each program is designed in ways that meet industry demands and needs.
Kauai Community College is ideal for students who:
Want to develop collaborative skills.
Kauai Community College might not be the best fit for students who:
Prefer to attend a college with transferable courses.
Online Associate Degrees
AS in Business
- Required Credits: 61
- Completion time: None Reported
- Format: Online
Hawaii is just one of many states offering excellent online associate’s degrees. To check out our rankings, look into the best online associate’s degrees in Alabama, Kentucky, Arizona, and more!
Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions
If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require a time of adjustment. Although you’ll typically learn the same material and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, going online will require greater independence and responsibility than going in person. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, for harnessing the online educational technology that you’ll need to use, and for completing the course requirements, such as listening to lectures, learning lessons, reading texts, and handing in assignments. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take the initiative in building relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.
No. The only part of online education that’s easier than campus-based education is ease of access: all you need is a computer and an internet connection for online education. But even this seeming advantage of online education can be misleading: what’s easier, studying online with your computer and internet connection from your home where you need to cook, clean, pay rent, and maintain a job? Or studying on campus in a dorm where all your living needs are handled by the school, and college staff are there to help you every step of the way?
If you take the commute to campus out of the equation, campus-based education is easier. All the support structures available on campus for students, especially with real people to help you in person, are not there online. The demands on you as an online student will largely be the same as for your campus-based counterpart, but without the same helps.
In general, your online courses will present the same material and test you in the same way as traditional in-person courses. In many cases, you’ll even have the same instructors as your on-campus counterparts. In fact, if you are adjusting to the experience of independent learning with remote educational technology for the first time, online college may be considerably more challenging than campus-based college. For a few insights on how to manage this new online experience, check out our 10 Tips for Adjusting to School Online.
Accreditation is especially important when it comes to online college. This is because the online education landscape is a mix of highly-reputable non-profit institutions on the one end and less-than-reputable for-profit institutions on the other end. Accreditation gives you the power to identify the more reputable actors in online education. Accreditation is a stamp of approval from an independent accrediting agency indicating that a college or university is meeting standards of quality and credibility. School-wide accreditation falls into two major categories: regional and national accreditation. Regional accreditors generally hold jurisdiction only over schools in the states comprising their region, whereas national accreditors hold jurisdiction over schools in all states. Regional accreditation is widely regarded as a more rigorous standard of quality and credibility than national accreditation.
Attending a college or university that is not regionally accredited could limit your opportunities. For students seeking an online education, we strongly recommend that they opt for regionally accredited schools. Regional accreditation ensures eligibility for federal loans and grants, ensures your college credits can be transferred between schools, and ensures that your degree credits can be accepted if you wish to earn an advanced degree. For more on this important topic, check out our What is Accreditation and Why Does It Matter? College & University Accreditation Guide.
As long as your online college degree is regionally accredited (see the previous point), you should have little difficulty transferring most of your credits or credentials to another regionally accredited undergraduate school. Every school carries its own standards and procedures for granting a transfer of credits. In many cases, you will encounter some bureaucratic haggling in which some of your credits will be transferred and others may be refused. However, provided that you have attended an online school with recognized regional accreditation, you should be in good shape in transferring your credits earned online.
In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript, or resumé differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.
Some employers may express the concern that because you did your degree online, you may need to transition from an online education experience to in-person workplace experience. But in an age of Covid, that concern seems much diminished. The fact is that much employment these days is remote. And collaboration increasingly happens online over Zoom. Many employers will therefore view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.
If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will be less than ideal for you (though depending on your circumstances, it may also be the only viable option).
While there is much in traditional campus-based education that can be substituted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing that can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual in-person classroom setting. As you transition to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face in getting the most out of your online classes is overcoming this difference between “real reality” and “virtual reality.” Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.
The advantages of online classes are many. Above all, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete at your own pace and on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.
Resources for Online College-Bound Students
Whether you’re just getting started on your college search, you’re looking for survival tips on your way to a bachelor’s degree, or you’re preparing for the transition into grad school, we’ve got guides, how to’s and tons of other valuable resources to keep you moving forward in your educational journey.